Ever Beating
by kirby1196
Summary: It's been 3 years since the incident that cost his best friend his life. In an act of self-redemption, Arthur sets out to bring Lewis home after the scene at the mansion. A lot can change in a few years though, and can Arthur ever get his best friend back and restore the memory of Vivi, or will he end up with the same fate as Lewis? (Own AU because of profiles)
1. Chapter 1

**PLEASE READ!**

Hey everyone, Kirby here with a not new story actually. I've been so busy with Ghost on my other profile that I've been gone a lot longer than I wished to be, and sadly I'm still needed over there. Don't fret though, for I bring a gift! I finished this back in December and I've been wanting to put it on fanfiction for a long time, but since there's no Ghost category I haven't been able to. But I'm taking my chances and I present to you all my first complete story, Ever Beating!

Now for other Ghost Fans out there this isn't 'cannon' because I wrote this before the profiles came out. So Arthur isn't 22, he doesn't live with Lance and he doesn't have Galahad, sad to say. Same with Lewis in that retrospect, so no Peppers guys! I'm still working on the kinks of trying to incorporate the actual cannon stuff to my EB world, but aside that!

I hope you all enjoy this story, and I'll try to put up a chapter at least once a week, but if you guys can't wait or want to see more of my Ghost stuff just simply pop over to my DA page, the link's on my profile!

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To say this was a silent evening would depend on who you asked. In the small, sleepy hometown of our protagonists, the sun had retired beyond the clouds and was slowly drifting below the ground, cascading the sky in oranges and gold. Leaves had started to drop from their respective homes in the trees, ever blowing in the gusty winds that seemed to never stop.

At the outskirts of the town was a small diner, where the occasional weary soul found himself a place to get a good meal before continuing once more in their everyday lives. The place was barely busy at the moment, with a young waitress behind the counter texting on her phone, and a group of noisy young adults sitting at one of the booths. Empty plates and cups were scattered upon their table after having dinner.

"I'm telling you guys, we have to check it out!" The only woman of the three placed her hands on their table, determination glinting in her blue eyes. Her short, blue hair swayed with her outward motions, while her blue scarf, blue sweater and blue skirt covered her body. Long, blue knee socks and blue dress shoes covered what little she showed of her legs, and a pair of magenta specs rested on her face. "I mean, how are we going to sell ourselves as a mystery-solving group if we don't have anything on our resumes?"

Her eyes were fixated on her friend who sat across the table from her, who seemed opposed to the idea. His giant, spiked, orange hair with a small cowlick of black and orange sideburns swayed ever so slightly with his movement. He wore a long, oversized white T-shirt, which he rolled up the sleeves, an orange vest and two black bands on both of his wrists. Long orange pants covered his legs, while he rested comfortably in his black sneakers. He rested his elbow on the table, projecting his hand. "And end up like the rest of the people who also supposedly ventured in to uncover the truth? I like being alive, Vivi!"

He pointed his open palm in the direction of their last friend, who sat close to Vivi with an arm wrapped around her shoulders. "Come on Lewis, talk some sense into Vivi. This is way too dangerous!"

Much like the other two, he also was composed of mostly a solid color scheme. His poofy, short purple hair and purple sweater vest were practically the same color, as he wore a nice, light purple ascot tied around his white, long-sleeved dress shirt. His purple dress pants and purple tennis shoes covered the rest of his tan body. Like Vivi, his eyes also seemed playful and excited. "Vivi's right, Arthur. If we're going to make this our living, we have to start uncovering some mysteries."

"Yes! 2 out of 3, we're going!" Vivi bounced up and down in her seat, giggling with excitement before grabbing Lewis' cheeks and giving him a kiss.

Lewis blushed hard, looking away for a second before the two shared an actual kiss. Arthur looked the most dejected out of the three. "Lewis!"

The two let up, with Vivi being a little miffed as Lewis gestured a hand. "Come on, Arthur. I'll make sure nothing happens."

"Can you guarantee that?" Arthur slumped in his seat, arms folded and eyebrow raised. He wasn't usually this pouty, but he had to put his foot down sometime when it came to all of the dangerous stuff Vivi wanted to throw them into. Someone had to think about their health, right?

Lewis opened his mouth to retort, but hesitated for a second. "Yes. I promise."

"See, nothing bad will happen now. We have Mr. big, bad Lewis on the case now." Vivi wrapped one of her arms around Lewis' arm, smiling all the while. Lewis blushed heavily again at Vivi's comment, shoulder's tensing. "Besides, we always have Mystery if there is trouble."

Arthur's shoulders fell, glancing away. "I don't know, it takes a lot from Mystery these days for him to change to and from his kitsune form. I wouldn't want to tucker him out with something stupid."

"Well then we better not do anything stupid." Vivi glanced in Arthur's direction, a tongue sticking out of her mouth.

Arthur sat up, somewhat upset by the notion. "Hey, I don't always get us in trouble!"

"Yes you do, you big scaredy-cat!" Vivi couldn't help but laugh at Arthur's red face, burying her face in Lewis' arm. Arthur let out a huff of frustration, glancing to Lewis who only gave him a half-hearted smile and shrugged his broad shoulders.

"Here's your to-go meal." The three glanced at the waitress who had come around, a doggy bag in her hand as she set it down on the table. She then proceeded to take some of the plates and cups, setting them atop of one another. "Do you need anything else?"

Lewis glanced to his best friend and girl friend, who lightly shook their heads. He then glanced back at their waitress, politely smiling. "No thanks Del, I think we're good."

"I'll bring the check then." Del, after stacking everything to the best of her abilities, left the three to continue their chat. Vivi had already started for the to-go bag, snatching it up and rummaging through the inside. "Hm, let's see. Some slices of turkey breast, mashed potatoes. Oh, Mystery is going to love his meal!"

"Too bad he's not allowed inside." Arthur glanced out of the window that was adjacent to their seat, spotting his van. "Mystery would have loved to eat with us."

"Well he is a dog right now." Lewis also glanced out at the van. "I don't think I've ever seen him take on the form of anything else."

"Apparently Arthur has seen him change into a dolphin." Vivi, who was still looking through the bag said with half closed eyes.

Lewis quickly glanced at his girl-friend before confusingly at Arthur. Arthur sat back up, his cheeks turning a slight red. "I was like 10 and didn't know how to swim at the time."

Lewis' eyes lit up. "Oh, that's why you never come and swim with us!"

"Didn't?" Vivi rolled the bag back up, a teasing smile pulling at her lips. "You still don't!"

Lewis by then had pulled Vivi close to him, concern in his eyes when he saw Arthur blush even more and turn away, clearly upset. "Come on, Vivi. Lay off him."

Vivi pursed her lips, about to argue that it was just a joke, when she realized how Arthur was acting. Her eyes darted to the table, her smile fading to a frown. "Sorry Arthur."

"Whatever. Not everyone has to learn how to swim." Arthur turned back to his two friends, gesturing a hand for emphasis. "I mean, we don't even live anywhere near any bodies of water! It's not like it's life or death for me."

"Yeah, who needs swimming?" Vivi smiled once more, grabbing Arthur's arm before pulling him across the table. She also grabbed Lewis, pulling both dudes in for a big group hug. "So long as we have each other, there's nothing we can't do!"

"Heh, I guess." Arthur, who was seriously uncomfortable lounging half-across the diner table and arm being bent in the wrong way, couldn't help but let loose once more. He couldn't be angry with his friends for long.

"A-hem."

The three looked up once more, seeing Del starring at them with skeptical eyes. She held the check in one hand, stretching it out for one of them to take. "Your check."

Vivi let go of the two, clearing her throat and glancing away nervously. Arthur pulled out his wallet, about to take the check when Lewis grabbed it before him. He winked at Arthur. "It's ok; I'll pay for it this time."

Arthur smiled, winking back as Lewis quickly handed Del a 20. "Keep the change."

She tucked the bill away, still uncharismatic with her face. "Have a good night."

Del then turned and left, but before she left, Arthur could have sworn Del smiled at him. He didn't get long to think about it though, as Lewis and Vivi were already up and out of their seats. Vivi reached into Arthur's booth, pulling on him. "Let's go, slow-poke! You're making Mystery wait longer!"

"Alright, I'm coming! You don't need to pull so hard." Arthur lightly played, getting out his seat before lightly punching Vivi in the shoulder with a grin. Vivi did the same before taking Lewis' arm once more, the three leaving the diner.

By the time they stepped out, the warm colors in the sky had cooled down to a dark blue, with some stars already starting to peek out. Lewis pulled out the van's car keys, as Vivi raced over to the side door. "Shot gun!"

"Aw, what? You got it last time." Arthur briskly walked over to the van, as Vivi stuck her tongue out once more.

"But I called it first."

"I think Mystery beat you two too it." Lewis, who by now had reached the driver's side, motioned for the two to look inside. Sure enough, Mystery was laying comfortably in the passenger's seat, ears pricking up when he heard the three outside.

Vivi folded her arms, her mood not deteriorating in the slightest. "Not a problem, I get the middle seat then."

Arthur rolled his eyes, opening the back when Lewis unlocked the van. "Alright, but I get it next time."

"You better call it first then." Vivi's smile only got bigger when Arthur gave her a mildly irritated look, before it transformed into a playful smug smile.

The gang piled themselves into the van, Lewis starting up the car as Vivi made her way past Mystery to the middle seat. "Hey Mystery! Sorry we were so long, but look what we got you!"

She held the bag up for Mystery to see, before setting it on her lap to take out the contents. Mystery sat up by this time in curiosity, his yellow specs sitting on his nose as his spiky red and black hair jutted out, much like Arthur's.

Arthur strapped himself into the extra seat in the back, leaning over the seats to ruffle Mystery's hair. "Hey Mystery. You miss us?"

Mystery, who in reality was an all powerful being and probably wiser than all of them put together, simply let out a happy bark and wagged his tail. He loved everyone in the group, and while he loved Vivi the most for taking care of him as a pup, it was Arthur that he felt the most connected to.

"So I guess you're going to drop us off?" Arthur nonchalantly asked, feeling a lot better and calmer.

Lewis and Vivi glanced behind with confused faces. Vivi was the one to speak. "What? No, we're going to go check out that cave! Remember?"

"Wait, what?" Arthur then noticed Lewis driving the van away from the diner, making Arthur all the more nervous. "I thought we were going to do that another time!"

"Did you have anything planned tonight?" Lewis checked the rear-view mirror, seeing Arthur's shocked and increasing scared face.

"Well no, but-!"

"Then this is the perfect time to solve this mystery!" Vivi triumphantly put her hands on her hips; all the while Mystery was waiting for Vivi to give him his dinner. When he expected that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, he grabbed the bag himself with his teeth and poked his nose inside, smelling the contents.

Raising a fist in the air, Vivi couldn't help but yell, "The Mystery Skulls is on the case!"

Lewis blushed, raising his fist to join in as Vivi looked back. "Come on Arthur, what could possibly go wrong?"

Arthur could think of a lot of things. Fact, he could think of several hundred bad things that could go wrong, but he knew he was beat and wasn't going to get out of this. He sighed, joining in the fist bump. "Mystery skulls go."

"That's the spirit!" The three took their hands back, as Vivi bounced in her seat again. "I can just see the newspapers now! 'Mystery Skulls discover horrible secret to the many deaths in the Emerald Caves!' Think of the business!"

She smiled. "I tell you two, after this night, nothing will be the same."

Nothing indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

_Arthur felt himself standing behind Lewis, who at the time was peering over a ledge to a big drop with stalagmites lining the ground. The two were exploring the cave that Vivi so wanted to check out earlier that evening, as Vivi and Mystery split up a few minutes ago to check out another route. Arthur could feel his legs shaking, his teeth chattering at the unnatural green fog that leaked out of nowhere, and the horrible eerie light that poured in from no visible open cracks or skylights. _

_A torch rested in Lewis' hands, giving the two some light to go off of that wasn't creepy as hell, but Arthur didn't feel himself. In fact, he wasn't himself, for soon enough he was watching himself from above, as if his spirit had left his body. _

No.

_Arthur could see Lewis' mouth moving, but no words came to Arthur's ears. He saw his best friend turn his head around; it's sweet, kind and calculating face speaking about solving the mystery of the many deaths in this cave. _

No no.

_Arthur saw himself respond, not having to know what he said in order to remember that night. "C-Can we leave now? This place doesn't feel right…"_

No no no.

_Lewis responded, but again the words were death on Arthur's spectral ears. His face seemed reassuring, probably telling him that everything was going to be alright. Everything __**wasn't.**_

_As if reliving it all over again, Arthur felt his fingers on his left hand twitch uncontrollably, before losing control of it entirely. The sensation kept crawling up his hand, up his arm, until he could feel it in his face. Words, demonic sentences crept into his mind all over again._

_**Kill him. End him now. This is your chance. This is what you want.**_

"_Lewis, run! Get away from me!" Arthur screamed at the top of his lungs, but not a sound came from his lips. Not that Lewis could hear. Instead, Arthur watched in horror, like every other time, every other night, his body slowly creep up behind his best friend._

_And shove him off the ledge._

NOOOOOOOO!

_The next thing Arthur knew, he was back inside his body, his limbs twitching out of control. He was forced to watch Lewis drop from the ledge, his face forever burned into his memory. Confusion, fear, anger, betrayal. The stalagmites soon pierced through his skin, rendering him just a bloody, messed up corpse. He felt himself hyperventilating, having to watch his best friend die just like that. Tears rolled down the right side of his face, grasping his green, left arm."What did I do?!"_

_A fierce roar came from the entrance of the tunnel Lewis and Arthur had taken, and just as Arthur spun around to see what was coming, something big tackled him to the ground. Mystery was now in his kitsune form, his teeth clamped down and piercing skin on his left arm, shaking it as if a dog would with its toy. Arthur felt like he was dying, the pain unbearable. Blood was going everywhere, getting on Mystery's fur and his body, until an inhumane sound and the worst pain Arthur ever felt in his life ripped through him._

_His arm dangled from Mystery's mouth, gushing blood on the ground and leaving Arthur's vision bloody. He was on the ground, crying his eyes out as his heart felt as though it was slowly imploding on itself. Why? Why? __**WHY?**_

"Arthur!"

The young adult sat up in his bed, covered in a deep layer of sweat. Tears were falling nonstop from his eyes, and unable to have the strength to stop them, just allowed the tears to continue. He sat up and leaned himself on the wall behind his bed, curling his legs up to his chest and choked on sobs.

3 Years. It had been 3 years since that horrible, terrifying day. 3 years since Arthur lost his arm, 3 years since Mystery had to save him from whatever possessed him, 3 years since Lewis died.

And it was all his fault.

"I'm so sorry, Lewis." Arthur whispered in between his sobs, trying to get ahold of his tears. He should have been stronger, should have realized what was happening right away and just ran. He should have done anything than besides stand there and quiver like the pathetic fool he was.

The same nightmare used to plague his mind every night for weeks on end, until it slowly started to disperse away. He hadn't had this dream in 2 weeks now, but to have it all over again was like experiencing that night for the first time once more.

A sympathetic whine got Arthur's attention. He lifted his head from his curled state, noticing Mystery sitting on his bed in front of him. The disguised kitsune looked just as sad as Arthur was, before getting up and laying himself at the feet of Arthur.

Arthur weakly smiled in between his tears, picking up Mystery in his shaky hands. "Come here, Mystery."

Mystery allowed himself to be picked up, being set down in Arthur's lap and hugged. Mystery tried to return the hug to the best of his abilities, knowing how much his friend was being pained by his nightmares.

Arthur was so glad Vivi allowed him to take care of Mystery for these last few months. His place had been so depressing and lonely all by his lonesome self, so to have another being around to talk to and take care of really made things feel better. While it felt like Arthur was taking care of Mystery most of the time, sometimes he felt it was really Mystery taking care of him.

It was also at this time that Arthur starred at his left arm, the one he had built himself 2 and a half years ago. It was a long, hard and sloppy process, but he finally got a prototype prosthetic arm working before upgrading it to a metal arm that was moveable with the occasional repair. While Arthur was thankful for his gifted mind to be able to build himself a new arm, it only served as a reflection of what happened and how it could never be undone.

Mystery soon pointed his nose to the opposite side of the room, prompting Arthur's eyes to follow. It was almost 8 in the morning, which meant that he would, again, be running late for work. Did he have to go in? He really didn't feel like going in this morning, not with that dream haunting him, but he had to get an income somehow.

Mystery seemed as if he was asking the same question when Arthur picked him up and set him down on the bed. "I know, I want to stay home too. I have to earn a living though, what with the mystery-solving…" His sentence trailed off, feeling his tears coming back. "Well…. You know."

Mystery's ears dropped behind his head, laying himself down on Arthur's bed as he watched him get ready for work. A few minutes later, he came out of his closest wearing an orange accented waiter's outfit, complete with a white apron that was tied behind his back and hanged below his waist and bronze cuffs for his white, long sleeved dress shirt.

"You want to stay here today?" Arthur asked as he started to leave his room, but Mystery soon got up and hopped off the bed, following behind Arthur. This made him smile, knowing that he had one friend who had his back right now. "Let's go to work then."

Getting into the old mystery skulls van, which still brought with it the depression and anxiety it did since the night, Arthur and Mystery buckled up and left the small, one-story house for work. It wasn't a long drive, since the diner was only 15 minutes away from Arthur's house, but it was still a drive nonetheless.

The door jingled from the bell tied to the top, letting the people inside know someone was entering. A head poked out from the back of the kitchen. "Morning Arthur."

"Hey Del." Arthur stepped inside, lingering by the still open door.

"I'll be out in a minute." She then darted back into the kitchen, leaving Arthur to quickly gesture with his eyebrows to Mystery to come in. Mystery, knowing the drill by now, scampered quickly and quietly towards the back of the diner, managing to squeeze into a hole and disappear from sight.

By then Del came out of the kitchen, carrying a few plates with pancakes, eggs, bacon and the like to the customers that were up at this hour. Arthur made his way behind the counter, washing his hands in case he needed to handle food and propped his elbows up on the counter.

When Del was done delivering food and taking orders, she walked back behind the counter, putting the orders on one of those rolling wheels. Her long, poofy blonde hair was put into a pony tail for work, as her heavy bangs were left untouched. She wore an accented yellow waitress's outfit with her long yellow riding boots, while her big, orange headphones were put away to not distract from work.

Despite looking like ray of sunshine, her demeanor and personality were the complete opposite. "You look terrible."

"Thanks." Arthur flatly replied, watching as Del finished putting the last of the tabs on the wheel.

She turned to him, placing one hand on her hip. Even though she was the biggest grouch to everyone, it seemed like she was nicer to him. Why he had no clue, he never did anything nice for her. Still, after taking up the job 2 years ago, he felt closer to her than he did Vivi right now. At least he could talk to Del about his problems…somewhat. "You want to talk after work?"

"Can we talk now?"

"No. You need to work."

Arthur sighed, nodding his head. Del, who smiled for a second, went back to her scowl when she heard the door ring again. "Your turn."

He turned his attention to the door, noticing someone unfamiliar come in as he set forth to take their order. He took out his pen and paper upon walking over, noticing the short, brown haired woman who had it pulled back in a rather messy ponytail. "Welcome to the Diner. Can I start you off with a drink?"

"Oh, uh…" The woman looked to the menu, trying to hide her freckle-ridden body, as she wore a green and gray striped sweater. "Uuuuuuhhh."

"Need some help?" Arthur asked, noticing a Del usher out from the back with a few piping plates.

"No no, I can do this!" The woman replied, startling Arthur a bit from how powerful the voice was from someone so shy.

She continued to ponder over the menu, which resulted in Arthur standing their awkwardly. "I guess I'll have water."

"Alright, water it is." Arthur scribbled it down, about to walk off when- "Actually."

He turned back around, noticing the woman peering at the menu once more. "How good is the coffee?"

"Frankly, I'm more of an energy drink guy." Arthur chuckled, never being able to stand that black liquid. "But I hear it's not bad."

"Not bad is not good enough." The woman surmised, her intent stare at the menu only getting more intense. "Maybe a soda. Yeah, I'll do that."

"Alright." Arthur wrote down, once again leaving when- "Actually, scratch that. I'll have a water."

"Would you like both?" Arthur asked, really having to get back to work.

"Nah, that's too much." The woman remarked. "Yeah, I'll get a soda. No wait, I really shouldn't. No, water. Wait, soda!"

"Del!" Arthur cried for help, his paper having been scribbled on too much.

"No." Del responded back behind the kitchen counter, leaving Arthur to drown at the hands of this picky customer.

"Hmm, does this come in turkey?"

"Del!"

And so Arthur found himself working for the next several hours, from taking orders in the best up-beat attitude he could call forth, to bringing out up to 10 plates and 5 cups of hot coffee to the busy diner. Occasionally Arthur would slink away to get Mystery some food without anyone seeing, or just going out back to relax with his bud during his breaks. It only started to settle down into the afternoon, until there was barely anyone in the evening.

Arthur was in the middle of wiping down the counter when he heard the door ring. He looked up from his pathetic thoughts, his spirit being lifted when he saw who came in. "Vivi!"

"Sup Arthur?" Vivi shot two finger pistols at him, grinning like the Cheshire cat. Arthur jumped over the counter, running over to hug his best friend.

"Whoa, you alright man?" Vivi, who certainly appreciated the hug and returned it, was a bit confused as to why Arthur was suddenly so clingy. Besides when he wasn't scared out of his mind.

"Yeah, just haven't seen you in awhile is all." He let go of Vivi, feeling so happy and up-beat again. "What have you been up to?"

"Oh, the usual. Working at the comic book store and whatnot." Arthur quickly led Vivi over to a booth, sitting down on the opposite side of Vivi.

"You getting a lot of regulars still?" Arthur asked, resting an elbow on the table.

Vivi motioned to the side with her hand. "It could be better. My boss came to work dressed up as Godzilla for the newest Manga release of 'Mutated monsters'. However he scared off more customers with the cheesy costume than actually selling the book."

"That must have been embarrassing." He joked, pointing a finger at Vivi. "I bet after a few more months you'll get just as bad as him for customers."

She just shrugged, looking to the ceiling. "You know me. Godzilla cosplayer and all over here."

The two shared a laugh, and for once Arthur felt alive again. The joke wasn't even that funny, but he couldn't help but burst out into a fit of laughter. This was what he needed after these 3 painful and agonizing months.

"Arthur."

Vivi stopped her laughing, her body shrinking into her seat as Arthur had to wipe a tear from his eye from laughing so hard. Del stood next to the table, her hands on her hip once more. "It's not your break-time."

"Aw come on, Del." He gestured over to Vivi, who grimly tried smiling at Del. Del was not amused. "I haven't seen Vivi in awhile. Can't I have this?"

Del skimmed over the two for a second, before letting out a monotonic sigh. "Fine. You take her order though. I'm going on break."

"Thanks, Del!" Arthur leaned out of his seat a bit, waving to Del as she walked off.

Vivi let out a sigh of relief when Del was out of ear-shot. "I swear Arthur; I don't know how you can work with her. She seems so… frightening."

"She's not that bad when you get to know her." Arthur nonchalantly waved his hand. He then got up, grabbing his pad of paper and pen from the pocket of his apron. "So, what are you hankering for?"

"Evening pancakes and coffee?" Vivi innocently asked, as if the notion of having breakfast after dusk was a taboo.

Arthur chuckled, "Totally! In fact, I'll put in an order myself." After writing down his and Vivi's orders, Arthur hopped over the counter once more to put the paper on the wheel. In a few minutes, he came back with a steaming cup of joe and some soda for himself. It was also at this time that Mystery came out of his hiding spot, happily jumping over to Vivi and into her lap.

Vivi giggled to see Mystery again, feeling his tongue on her cheeks. "Hey Mystery! You been taking good care of Arthur?" She then looked to Arthur. "How has it been with him?"

Arthur smiled to see Mystery out, petting his head. "It's been great actually. I can't thank you enough for letting him stay with me."

"Hey, that's what friends are for." Vivi said with reassurance. She then looked to Mystery, smiling. "Besides, I think he likes your place better. It has less spooky artifacts in it."

He then gave Vivi her coffee, who took it with kind thanks, Mystery getting off of her lap to sit beside her. "Anyways, I actually came in here to tell you about something." Vivi's smile morphed into a goofier, giddy smile. "I met this guy while I working 2 weeks ago and well… I have a boyfriend!"

Arthur almost choked on his soda when he was taking a sip, spitting the contents sadly on Vivi. Even Mystery looked shocked, turning his head to Vivi with eyebrows raised. "Wh-what?!"

"Arthur!"

Arthur quickly noticed what he did, getting up from his booth to grab some napkins. "Oh man, sorry about that Vivi."

Vivi sighed, taking the napkins to wipe the soda off of her face. "It's alright. I didn't think you'd freak out that badly though."

Arthur sat back down, gripping his cup of soda. "I just… I mean, boyfriend? Don't you think you might be rushing it?"

Vivi's playful and happy mood quickly sunk for a more serious tone. "Arthur, I've never dated anyone before in my life! I thought you would be happy that I finally found someone who loves me!"

"But he isn't your-" Arthur stopped himself before he could say anymore, the words lingering on his tongue like bullets in a gun.

Vivi raised an eyebrow, confused. "What do you mean he isn't my-" Her mood suddenly changed into a grave undertone, Mystery lowering his head in fright and ears dropping knowing that Arthur had said the wrong words. "Oh not this again."

"Vivi, I can-"

"No more, Arthur!" Vivi slammed her hands on the table, glaring at Arthur with hurt and upset eyes. "I don't know what that cave did with your mind, but I don't want to hear anymore about this supposed 'Lewis' that has made you go crazy! We went in there together, we split up, and the next thing I know your arm is gone and you're screeching about killing someone!"

Unbeknownst to Vivi, Arthur watched as her lip started to quiver, her eyebrows lowering in concern. "I'm started to get scared for you, Arthur. What that cave did to your mental state."

She placed her hand on one of Arthur's but he quickly took it away. His face was stern. "I'm not crazy, Vivi! We had a funeral and everything! His family-!" But the more Arthur rambled, trying desperately to get Vivi to remember, the more he saw the fear in her eyes. She was concerned for him, very concerned.

Arthur placed his hand back on the table, dropping his head. "Ok, you're right. That cave did something with my mind and it's…it's just been a struggle." He turned his head away, feeling Vivi's hand on his again. He didn't take it away. "I'm sorry for scaring you, Vivi."

"No, I'm sorry. I should have never dragged you into that cave." It was Vivi's turn to look away, as Arthur glanced up at her. Mystery brought his head back up, placing a paw in Vivi's lap to try and comfort her. "I just figured we could make an awesome job out of all of the spooky things that happen in the world. But… it's not worth it if it hurts you like this."

Arthur couldn't help but feel so angry and so sad for his best friend. He didn't know what happened to Vivi after she separated from Lewis and Arthur, but when he ran to her for help and somehow redemption from his horrible act, she seemed blank on what happened. She was even right next to his corpse, still impaled on the rocks.

"_Vivi, don't you see him?! Lewis!"_

"_What… are you talking about? I don't see anyone…"_

In an emotional act, Arthur took his hand out from under Vivi's before grabbing it. She looked to him with surprise, tears in the corners of her eyes. "Let's get out of this depressing town for a weekend. Go on an adventure, maybe find something mysterious and unmask it for the world to see."

Vivi, who seemed to lift her spirits with the mention of a vacation, dampened when he mentioned mystery solving. "Arthur, I can't-"

"Come on Vivi, I know you've been itching to do something fun! Just you, me and Mystery, one last big road trip! I'll even pay for the hotel, you just pick a destination."

For half a second, it really seemed like Arthur broke Vivi. She looked surprised and confused, before her normal, sincere smile came back. Her tears finally fell, but they were out of happiness. "Oh Arthur."

She then reached over the table, giving him the biggest and most crushing hug she could bring forth. "You're the best and sweetest friend a girl could ever have!"

"H-heh, I've been told." Arthur tried to smoothly say, but instead came out strained with the lack of oxygen he was getting. "Ok, you're crushing my ribcage now!"

"Oops, sorry!" Vivi let go, allowing Arthur to partake in a few deep breaths. She giggled and used her sleeves to dry her eyes at Arthur's silly and over exaggerated moves to get air in his body. Mystery smiled, wagging his tail once more. "You're too easy to get riled up, you know that right?"

"As I've been told again." Just then the bell at the window to the kitchen was rung, telling the two there meal was ready. Mystery perked up when he heard the bell, scampering off back to his hiding hole in case someone came out. Arthur and Vivi shared a giggle over Mystery before he walked over, grabbing their plates before setting them down. "Your meal, my lady."

Vivi popped her back straight, taking on a primp pose. "Why thank you, kind sir. I do so enjoy fat crepes in the evening."

The two shared in another laugh, just as Vivi pulled out her wallet. Arthur stopped her immediately. "Not one step further. This one's on me."

"Really? Thanks, a free meal always tastes better." Vivi took a smug bite of her pancakes, eyebrows raised as Arthur couldn't help but smile.

"_It's ok, I'll pay for it this time."_

The two stayed around joking for another hour, catching up and having a good time until it was time to close the Diner. Vivi let herself out, giving Arthur another bear-hug before promising to text him tomorrow about plans. Arthur waved her out, noticing Mystery coming out of his hiding spot once he knew the chef was gone. Together the two closed shop and just as Arthur was locking the place to leave back to his home, he heard that familiar, monotonic tone. "Hey."

Arthur turned away from the door, noticing Del in her civilian clothes. She wore a snuggly warm hoodie, complete with white and yellow cat ears on the hood and a white tail coming off the end. With it she also wore her riding boots, her headphones, which were on her head at the moment, and dark yellow Capri pants. "Hey Del."

Unlike 99% of the time, Del's face seemed a little softer, her voice not so droned and uncaring. "Could you take me home? My ride canceled on me last second."

Arthur looked down at Mystery, who just shrugged his shoulders to the best of his ability. Arthur looked back up with a smile. "Yeah sure. Where do you live?"

"1578 Westfield Drive." As Del said this the two were moving over to Arthur's van. She noticed the logo on the side. "You in a band?"

"What? Oh no." Arthur took some time to reflect on the old logo, feeling sentimental. He unlocked the van, hopping into the driver's seat as Del took the passengers. Mystery hopped up into the van, sitting in between the two with a happy face, which Del didn't understand. "That was our old logo for Vivi, Lewis and I. The Mystery Skulls! You have a mystery on your hands, and we'll come at it like a band!"

Arthur started up the van, pulling out of the driveway. Del turned her head to look at Arthur, eyebrow raised. "Did you make up that logo?"

Arthur blushed a bit, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "Heh, maybe. I'm not very good at rhyming."

"I could tell." Arthur glanced over in Del's direction, who took to looking out the window. "You must have really cared about this group."

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I did." Arthur shrugged his shoulders. "Our mysteries usually ended with some old man in a rubber costume and we did get paid, but it wasn't about the money or stopping Mr. Burbanks from down the street. We did it so that we could all be together, to live out an exciting life from the norm and know that we had each other's backs…" It was then that Arthur's thoughts came back. "Just like I should have had Lewis'."

"Don't." Arthur looked over to Del, who was now starring at him with her intense eyes. "It's not your fault Lewis died, so stop blaming yourself. You're too kind to let that happen to your friend."

Out of all of that, Arthur only caught one thing. "You think I'm kind?"

Del, who was just as surprised as Arthur, quickly looked away with some blush on her face. "I didn't say that. I said stupid. You're too stupid to kill off anyone."

"Oh. Well." Arthur went back to focusing on his driving, a little insulted at Del's words. The ride to Del's house was silent, until he pulled up beside her place. "Here we are."

Del got out of the van without a word, starting her way up the driveway. Arthur glanced to Mystery, who looked confused and just as upset as Arthur was. How rude.

Just as he started to leave though, he saw Del running back over to the van with a hand raised. He stopped the van, pulling down the passenger window. "Forget something?"

"Uh no." She buried her face in her hoodie, cheeks blushing. "I… I don't think you're stupid."

That didn't sound like what Del was trying to say originally, but Arthur took it anyways, smiling. "Uh, thanks."

"And you are very kind…"

"What was that?"

Del looked up, frustrated. "I said goodnight." She then walked off back up to her place, leaving Arthur to glance out the window from where she left. He shrugged his shoulders at Mystery. "I wonder what's up with her."

Turning on the headlights from the apparent darkness, Arthur rolled out in his van towards home, giddy with excitement for the weekend. This was going to be one awesome road-trip.

* * *

Special mention goes to Deviantart user SteamMouse who won second place in my contest for the story! She's the girl in the beginning that Arthur has to serve on. : P


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